


Safe Haven

by Heroicagalmuse



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Not Canon Compliant, Slow Burn, Sole Survivor named Lucille
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-05-17
Packaged: 2018-10-20 16:04:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10666089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heroicagalmuse/pseuds/Heroicagalmuse
Summary: "Mark my words, the Brotherhood’s here to start a war.”  Nick stated as the Prydwyn flew overhead. He was right.The Brotherhood comes in with the force of an army to protect the Commonwealth as they see fit, under martial law. When they make it to Diamond City, Nick and his partner are forced to flee to Goodneighbor to seek refuge all the while trying to dodge Institute interference and a particular soldier who is after the Vault Dweller for reasons unknown.Now the Sole Survivor is in the fight of her life for the future of the Commonwealth for all of the people, ghouls, synths, super mutants, and humans alike.





	1. A Good Neighbor

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILER WARNING: Canon divergence and spoiler warning for the main quest and side quests associated with the history of Danse, Nick, and Hancock.  
> Just a what if scenario concerning what would happen if the Brotherhood decided to "protect" the Commonwealth through occupation. No Danse bashing will follow, I too like the Paladin but disagree with the philosophies of the Brotherhood, especially since Nick and Hancock are my favorite companions.

There were times when Lucille couldn’t believe her luck. What had once been pre-war good fortune had turned into post-war tribulation starting with the slaughter of her husband and it dogged her every step of the Wasteland. Upon coming out of the Vault she had had to work her way through radroaches, searching fruitlessly for some sign of Shaun amongst the desolate ruins of her old neighborhood to humor her out of sorts Mr. Handy, and then she had traipsed over to Concord to find help and instead found herself in a battle for her life against raiders. Joining the Minutemen, she had delayed in her hunt for Shaun to help them set up camp in Sanctuary before taking off to Diamond City to find help in searching after her husband’s murderer, only to find said help was as locked away in a vault as she had been for the past two hundred years. It was one thing after another, but she persevered with the determination of a desperate mother and a vengeful wife. Turns out, that little trip to Vault 114 was one of the best things that had happened to her upon coming out of Vault 111. 

Nick Valentine was her best friend, but more importantly, her partner. After the initial shock of discovering the detective she had been sent to find was a in fact part machine and part man, she had been able to do nothing if not trust Nick Valentine to have her back starting with that first search for Kellogg, to the trail going cold, up to building settlements for the Minutemen as they desperately searched for a sign of him. There were cases in Diamond City to keep them occupied, and raiders terrorizing settlements, and super mutants to wipe out from advancing upon Sanctuary, and all the other dangers of the Wasteland that kept them distracted and slowly, as time crept on, Lucille started to feel content. She had a sense of purpose. While she wouldn’t be whole until she found Shaun, she had come to understand that you didn’t survive long in the Wasteland if you let loss stop you from moving forward. So for now, until they were able to pick up the trail of Kellogg, she was in a strange sense of peace with her partner at her back and enough work to keep her mind off of the passage of time and the lingering grief of her torn apart family. 

It was good for a while, until that infamous misfortune struck again and her newfound home was wrenched from her once again. 

The day the Brotherhood of Steel made their presence known in the Common Wealth, Lucille had felt a deep chill set in her bones. The looming warship was like something out of her nightmares about the bombs dropping and the pre-war world, usually followed by an irradiated blast that would wipe out anything in its path. The look of dread that she had seen mar Nick’s face had also been cause for concern. When she asked him about it, the Edgar Allen Poe line had echoed the sense of omen she got from the Prydwen.

“Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing.” The ancient words echoed harshly through the silent night after the mechanical fortress had flown by, making her shudder just to think about what their arrival could mean. They could be friendly as they had insisted, or more likely as her partner had observed with their overt display of force, they could be here to take over. 

“Mark my words, the Brotherhood’s here to start a war.” Lucille had hoped he was wrong, but the longer the Brotherhood stayed in the Commonwealth the more apparent that became. On recon missions when they were scouting out places for new settlements for Preston, or just looking to see if there was a place to set up camp or find supplies, whenever they heard the heavy footfalls of power armor they would dash for cover and wait it out until they were gone. Lucille had once thought about approaching them until she saw them interacting with a group of settlers coming down the road. 

A man named Proctor Teagan as they heard him called and a few of his colleagues hassling the group about paying their fair share for the protection of the Brotherhood. When they asserted that they were aligned with the Minutemen and had no need of protection from the soldiers, the assembled knights didn’t take too kindly to it. Especially when they were called out for their actions by a ghoul. Things could’ve gotten bad if a Paladin hadn’t come up the road to meet them and stepped in, causing Proctor Teagan to recant his statement with a hiss at the group of civilians that they were lucky before they continued on their way. Not before the Paladin gave the settlers a glance and sneered at the ghoul as they passed, voicing aloud to his friends how he didn’t understand why the civilians could stand the company of a rotting corpse, followed by the call back that at least the ghoul wasn’t a synth. This was met with another comment of “I don’t know which is worse” as they passed by where Lucille and Nick were crouched and had nearly ran out to the aid of the group when things had started to escalate. Holding her breath, she looked at her partner who had a blank look of exasperation on his face as the assembled soldiers marched past. 

Lucille had gently put her hand upon his arm in a gesture of support and he had simply inclined his head toward the settlers, indicating that they should escort them to Sanctuary Hills where they seemed to be headed. She had nodded and they had approached the group, offering their services. They were wary at first, looking for the catch, but one of them recognized Nick and the others soon put together that Lucille’s title was both Vault Dweller and Minutemen General these days and happily assented to their help. From then on, Lucille made it her business to avoid the Brotherhood while also deploying more troops to protect the territory of the Minutemen and monitored their frequency on her Pip-Boy studiously when she was able to pick it up. They hadn’t officially declared war, but Nick was right in assuming it couldn’t be far off. And from the look of it, anyone who didn’t fit their bill of humanity would be in their crosshairs along with those who wouldn’t comply with their rules if that exchange upon the road was the norm. She wasn’t sure if it was, but she knew enough to understand they wouldn’t take too kindly to people like her and Nick. 

So they avoided the Brotherhood and continued their work and helped the people of the Commonwealth while keeping an eye out for Shaun and things were decent. She was content. That was, until her misfortune caught up to her again. 

Now she was dragging her partner through the ruins of downtown Boston looking for a safe harbor he had managed to direct her to before falling unconscious, or his equivalent of being unconscious anyway, hoping that this town he had directed her to was as friendly as the name implied. Goodneighbor wasn’t too far from Diamond City but trying to dodge the patrols of the Brotherhood initiates and knights, as well as the super mutants and raiders had taken its toll on the both of them. One particularly nasty encounter with a fleet of Brotherhood of Steel soldiers who took one look at the pair of them and decided they must both be synths because to them surely no pure human would be with someone so obviously synth-like as Nick, and it had resulted in him taking a bullet for her while she was studiously trying to fire warning shots at the advancing wave. 

After that, she was a lot less forgiving in her aim and the wounds she inflicted would do some serious damage after they penetrated their power armor. After the soldiers had taken a moment to regroup and think a new way through to attack the two of them after a few of Lucille’s pot shots had taken hold, she had grabbed Nick and started to run, leaving a trail of discarded weaponry and supplies in their wake in order to allow her to move unencumbered with the extra dead weight with the synth detective now her burden to bear.

As she had hauled him up, they were able to slip away with the use of the precious Stealth-Boy that they had scrounged up in rifling through an abandoned workstation, and a few doses of Buffout (a few more than were probably healthy). The two of them had agreed that the Stealth-Boy should be used for emergencies only, and Lucille counted this as an emergency. There was only a little bit of juice left in it, so they had to move fast and stealthily. She had started in a random direction before Nick had softly shook his head while pointing in Goodneighbor’s general direction before he went into a sort of sleep mode. At least she hope it was a sleep mode. Valentine had once said that he didn’t need sleep, but as a synth there had to be some sort of program in there that allowed him to shut down and preserve necessary internal functions when severely damaged, right? 

As Lucille dragged him in the direction of where he had pointed, she picked up a signal of some old Silver Shroud episodes playing over the radio. In it, a man named Kent had requested fans of the show come to visit him in Goodneighbor at the Memory Den and her Pip-Boy gave her a better sense of how to get there. 

She had a vague recollection of the town, Nick having mentioned it in passing one night as they were discussing other settlements around the Commonwealth. When she had enquired as to what it was like, Nick had shrugged and said it was a bit of a rough town but that it had a rustic charm to it and a mayor who owed him a favor. Lucille intended to cash in on that favor. 

They were yards from the door with what looked like graffiti marking the location when their Stealth-Boy ran out and a group of scavengers that were camped nearby saw the easy prey. They didn’t have the best aim, but one of them had hurled a knife that penetrated right through the old trench coat she was wearing after she had taken her armor off to be able to move around swiftly. Her shoulder throbbed in agony, and she gave a yell of pain, but she sprinted the last few yards to the door with a speed enhanced by desperation and none of the scavengers were brave enough to follow them through the entrance knowing what Hancock would do to anyone who charged into his town to abuse the downtrodden traveler. It never ended well. 

Throwing open the door in haste, she stumbled past the threshold with her partner in tow as the Buffout started to wear out as well. Breathing heavily in exhaustion, she slammed the door shut behind her, wrenched the knife out of her shoulder with a small cry of pain, and leaned against the entrance as Nick slid from her shoulders to hanging off of her side with one arm draped around her neck. He hadn’t made another comment since his point towards the town and Lucille was starting to get very worried. 

“Nick—“She croaked before a seeing a man standing in front of her, leaning over the mess of the two PIs pathetically splayed out against the entrance to the settlement.

“Well, well. What’ve we got here?” A voice that grated like sandpaper and smelled of dirty tobacco asked her. Lucille looked up at the man who stood before them and her heart sank into her stomach. Coming to Goodneighbor she had hoped they’d live up to the sign out front that said “All are welcome” loudly and proudly near the entrance. The balding raider-type eyeing her and Valentine like a Brahmin steak gave the opposite effect. “Couple’a weary travelers on their first time in Goodneighbor?” 

She didn’t say anything but looked around for an escape route that didn’t involve trying to fight this guy. Her ammo was low, everything but a few clips and pistols dumped to allow her to bear Nick’s weight. There was a stash of caps and Nate’s wedding ring and that’s all she’d kept. Ammo was too precious to use right now, and she wasn’t going to waste the small amount of caps she had to pay someone to look after her partner on buying her way out of a fight with some lowlife.

Hoping to get him to back off without the use of weapons, Lucille stood up on shaky legs and interposed herself between Valentine and the obvious oncoming threat.  
“Look, you keep walking and I keep going about my business.” 

“Now don’t be like that, I think you’re going to like what I have on offer.” The man replied, obviously seeing that she was in no state to fight back. “You hand over everything you got in them pockets, or ‘accidents’ start happenin’ to ya. Big, bloody, ‘accidents’. ‘N between you and me, sweetheart, your pet synth don’t look like he could stand for any of the kind of accidents that happen in Goodneighbor and neither do you.” Lucille started to gather her position into a fighting stance as the man made his way menacingly forward towards the pair of wanderers when someone intervened. 

“Whoa, whoa. Time out.” The ghoul who decided to stop the encounter came out from an alleyway where he had silently been watching the interchange with a companion. He eyed the sad pair of them and a glimmer of recognition and then concern showed when he took in the state of Nick. He turned on the extortionist in a moment of bemusement and anger brimming beneath the surface. “Someone steps through the gate the first time, they’re a guest. I’ve told you to lay off that extortion crap. And besides, Nick’s an old friend. Back off.” 

“What’d you care? She ain’t one of us.” 

“No love for your mayor, Finn? I told you Nick an’ I got history and the newcomer’s a guest. Let ‘em go.” Mayor? This was Hancock, the man who owed Nick a favor? Lucille felt some relief flow into her system. He seemed to be on their side, so she was cautiously optimistic about getting help. She hoped that their meager stash of caps along with whatever “history” he had mentioned earlier would be enough. 

“You’re soft, Hancock. You keep letting others walk all over us, one day there’ll be a new mayor.” Hancock just shook his head and stalked forward with a deceivingly friendly smile. 

“Come on, man. This is me we’re talking about. Let me tell you something.” He raised his arms in a friendly gesture of comradery, and Lucille had to wonder if he was about to cave to the other man’s words before the glint of a knife caught a ray of sunlight as it reeled towards its target and the man Finn went down with a stab to the gut. Hancock sighed and cleaned off the edge of his blade against the dying man’s shirt. “Now why’d you have to go and say that, huh? Breaking my heart over here.” He chided and then turned his attention back to the newcomers. “You alright sister?” The vehemence that had painted his tone was gone, replaced by a genuine concern. 

“Nick needs help.” Lucille decided to assume he was on their side and hope for the best. She was just about at her limit and she needed to get this across before she wasn’t at functioning capacity anymore. 

“Yeah, he ain’t lookin’ so good.” Hancock agreed. “KL-E-O we’re gonna need some spare parts! Daisy, get Doctor Amari. Our friend Valentine’s gonna need some fine tuning.” He looked over the woman who was just on the cusp of consciousness, leaning hard against the rickety wall that surrounded Goodneighbor. “And our new friend here is gonna need it too.” 

“’m fine. Help Nick.” Lucille murmured before her knees buckled in contrast to her statements. 

“I ain’t about to let one of my friends die, Nicky’s gonna be just fine but he’d kill me if I let anything happen to his partner. You are that plucky new sidekick I’ve been getting whispers about down here, aren’t ya?” Too tired to do anything other than nod, Lucille did just that. “Well then, let’s get you cleaned up for when Nick’s all fixed up. Then you can tell me just what brought ya to my door.” As Hancock lifted her up to carry her, presumably towards someone to look after her own ailments, she looked back to the assaultron that clambered over to Nick to tend to him. Noticing her hesitance to be parted from her partner, Hancock reassured her of their intentions. “Goodneighbor’s of the people, for the people, you feel me? You and Nick are gonna be just fine here.” 

That simple declaration of kindness in what had been one hellhole to the next ever since she stepped out of the Vault was enough to give Lucille enough sense of security that she could let go and rest. They had reached a safe haven from the Brotherhood, raiders, Wasteland, and anything else out there that was out to devour the loners and drifters alive, and in this place she felt a sense of peace that had been missing when they were anywhere but Sanctuary Hills.  
She knew she had a long explanation ahead of her about their flight from Diamond City, and a warning about the encroaching military rule of the Brotherhood of Steel, but they were alright for now. And for now, that was all she needed.


	2. Anything Goes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one in which you learn what happened in Diamond City.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a flashback, so it is chronologically before the first chapter.

_“In olden days, a glimpse of stocking_   
_Was looked on as something shocking._   
_But now, God knows,_   
_Anything goes.”_

Lucille hummed along to the words as she and Nick lounged in the Detective’s office in Diamond City.  Nick was looking over some old cases as Lucille had her nose in some receipts, trying to track a stash of caps that a suspicious husband was sure his wife was sending off to a secret lover over in a town not too far from Diamond City: Goodneighbor. She had asked Nick about the place once when they were a half-day’s walk from home, returning from Sanctuary on some business for the Minutemen. A few settlers had come from there to Sanctuary and she was curious about just what kind of people lived there, hoping to open trade routes and do business. Nick had agreed it might be a possibility, but he had said that it might be tricky trying to get things up and operating along the guidelines that they used when dealing with most other settlements.

“Goodneighbor’s a rough sorta place, but it’s got a rustic charm to it. Hancock might be willing to play ball if we’re a bit flexible in setting up relations.” Inquiring about who Hancock was, Valentine had lit a cigarette and thoughtfully took a drag as he tried to find the best words to describe the man.

“Well, he’s the mayor of Goodneighbor. A bit free spirited, some might even go so far as to call his way of running things chaotic but it works for the folks up there. I should know, I’ve been there more than my fair share chasin’ down leads. Even worked with Hancock on a few of those cases. All in all, I’d say he’s got his heart set in the right place, if not his head all the time on account of a particular fondness for chems.” Beyond that, he hadn’t said much else as Lucille had nodded and drifted off, trusting his judgement on character.

Now it looked like they’d finally get a chance to go there since this case was one where they’d have to follow them money quite literally. As she was about to suggest they head that way in the morning to her partner, the door was thrust open and a panting Piper and Ellie slammed it shut after they entered. Lucille jolted in her seat to look at the clearly agitated women, and Nick looked up with his own equivalent look of surprise.  
“Piper? Ellie? What’s going on?” Lucille questioned before Valentine got a chance.  
“Nick, you’ve gotta get out of here right now!” Ellie urged, rushing forward to collect various gear strewn about the office and piling it on Nick’s desk in front of him. Piper set about rummaging their fridge and medkits, collecting stimpacks and gauze and thrusting those into Lucille’s hands.

“You got enough supplies to last you Blue?” She asked, taking note of the bag that was sitting by the desk.

“Piper, Ellie, What. Is. Going. On?” Lucille asked in exasperation, staring at the two women as Nick just blinked in confusion at the pile of weapons sitting on his desk.

“They’ve taken over the city and that coward McDonough just rolled over belly-up and let them!” Piper exclaimed as Ellie nodded frantically, her eyes darting towards the windows and doors as though she was expecting them to cave in at any minute.

“Slow down, even breaths. Who are we talking about here?” Valentine finally got a word in, deciding that maybe he would have a better shot at getting the women to talk than his very annoyed and exhausted partner.

“The Brotherhood of Steel. They just marched right up to the door and sent their soldiers everywhere. The guy who leads them, Maxson, he just strolled in like he owned the place and demanded to speak with McDonough, saying that Diamond City is now ‘under the protection of the Brotherhood of Steel’. They’re locking the whole place down, searching house to house for anyone who they think might be an Institute spy or a synth. He didn’t say what he’ll do with ‘em, but we know enough about the Brotherhood to know it won’t be just a friendly chat. You two have got to get out of town before they find you.” Piper explained as Lucille started to hastily throw their gear together. As soon as Piper had said Brotherhood, she’d been packing.

“Now hold on a second there Lucille, they’re not after you.” Nick protested, not wanting to drag any of his friends into this mess.

“Actually, Nick, they are.” Piper countered. “We heard them talking as we were headed over here, they’ve heard about the pair of you and for some reason they’ve got a special interest in the ‘Vault Dweller’. There’s only one person in whole city who fits that description.”

“Besides Nick, we’re partners. You’re not going this alone.” Said Vault Dweller piped up. There was the sound of large metallic footfalls outside as the neighbors next to the office were instructed to open up for routine inspection. Valentine didn’t have time to argue, but he wouldn’t have anyway. He knew when he didn’t have a leg to stand on, and even if he did he knew he wouldn’t have changed Lucille’s mind. She had that look on her face that meant her mind was set and she wouldn’t be changing it for anything.  
“You guys sneak around back, we’ll cover for you.” Ellie whispered to them as the footsteps drew nearer.  
“Will you guys be okay?” Lucille worried for their friends and Piper gave a sad smile.

“We’ll be fine Blue. Neither of us are synths, and half the town knows you guys anyway. They can’t single us out for that.”

“But—“

“Citizens open your door and prepare for inspection!” A voice bellowed outside. Lucille recognized it as the Paladin they had once seen out on the road when they had seen a squad of soldiers harassing a group of settlers. Oddly enough, that behavior stopped as said Paladin arrived. What had they called him? It started with a d…

“Alright, let us get decent first!” Ellie yelled back angrily while Piper pushed the synth detective and Lucille out towards the backdoor. With a quick hug to each of them and a whisper of “good luck”, Piper shut the backdoor and turned to face the incoming soldiers. There was the click of a lock for good measure, and it echoed in the alleyway with finality.

Lucille had shared a look with Nick who looked just as concerned for their friends, but had accepted that there wasn’t much else they could do for them at the moment, taking note of the patrols that were starting to come in their direction. Sticking to the shadows, the two started towards the city gates in the hope that they’d be able to slip out. They had a Stealth-Boy that they’d have to use for a few moments in getting out the front gate, but they’d have to turn it off straight after that to conserve the battery for their next emergency.

As they slinked towards the exit of Diamond City, Lucille trying to figure out where they should go next, the tune that had been playing in their office lazily finished its refrain in a bit of sardonic wit as their world crumbled around them.

_“Just think of those shocks you've got_   
_And those knocks you've got_   
_And those blues you've got_   
_From that news you've got_   
_And those pains you've got_   
_(If any brains you've got)_   
_From those little radios._   
_So Missus R., with all her trimmin's,_   
_Can broadcast a bed from Simmons_   
_'Cause Franklin knows_   
_Anything goes.”_

“Anything goes”. It was more true than not in this case, the people with the biggest guns made the rules in the Commonwealth and the Brotherhood had some awful big guns. She grit her teeth against the injustice and sense of loss at yet another home being wrenched from her by yet another war that she had no desire to be a part of, but as she glanced over to her partner steadily keeping pace with her, she couldn’t help but be grateful that she wasn’t alone. One thing was for sure, she wasn’t going to let anyone hurt the people she cared about again.

She wasn’t the helpless Vault Dweller anymore, she was the General of the Minutemen and a PI in her downtime. She’d made leaps and bounds in her capabilities, and if the Brotherhood thought that they could take her or her partner down easily, they had another thing coming.

But first things were first, they had to find a place that they could get their bearings. Figure out the best way to deal with this change in dynamics. Her mind went back to the case that moments ago they had been working on, and after suggesting it to Nick, he agreed that Goodneighbor was as good a destination as any to flee to for the moment. So they set out on their trek towards what they hoped would be their safe haven, and Lucille could only hope that they lived up to their name. They could use a good neighbor right about now.


	3. Common Decency. A Pleasant Change.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one in which Hancock is clued in and Lucille gets to meet the charming mayor of Goodneighbor without any stabbing to distract them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder that this story contains SPOILERS for character backstories. That is all.

Lucille moaned as she started to regain consciousness. She was disoriented and confused, unsure of where she was. The only thing she understood was the pulsating and throbbing pain that was coming from her shoulder. On top of that her stomach was roiling, and she felt shaky all over. What had happened? Then it hit her all at once and she sat bolt upright in bed.

“Nick!” She croaked, looking around frantically for any sign of her partner. As she sat up, her stomach lurched and she started heaving.

“Easy.” A gravelly voice instructed, putting a trash can right in front of her as she threw up. “That’s it. Ride it out.” There was a slight prick on her arm and she looked over to see a bright red frock coat and a tricorn hat. Hancock was there, administering her a dose of Med-X as she ejected the over indulgence of chems from the day before in her haste to get Nick to Goodneighbor. How many doses of Buffout had she taken? She’d only had a few chems before, and the overabundance of them in her system had taken a hefty toll on her.

“Nick?” Lucille repeated as the mayor of Goodneighbor gently pushed her back down against the pillow on the cot she was splayed out on.

“He’s fine. KL-E-O took real good care of him, he’s good as new with a few new battle scars to impress the ladies with.” Hancock winked suggestively and Lucille smiled in spite of herself. “Doc Amari’s takin’ a look at him now to make sure all his gears are still running smooth up top.” He poked the side of his head, demonstrating that Nick was getting an evaluation on his cognitive functions. “I told her I’d keep an eye on her new patient. You’ve had a rough time of it sister.”

“Tell me about it.” Lucille agreed tiredly as she clenched her eyes shut against the bright light shining down from above in the little stall that served as a bedroom for patients in the makeshift clinic. Hancock gave her a sympathetic look.

“Yeah, I told ‘em they might wanna turn down the lights seein’ as half the folks that come in here for a visit are either high or drunk but they spouted some garbage about needing to see to accurately diagnose their patients or something like that.” Hancock shrugged, obviously trying to put the woman at ease with some light banter.

“I suppose that’s a good enough reason to blind us as anything else.” She conceded. “I never got the chance to thank you by the way Mayor Hancock.” Before she could say anything more Hancock held up his hands in a gesture to cut her off.

“It’s Hancock to the folks around town, John to my friends. I appreciate the formal title an’ all, but you’re a friend of Nicky’s and that means you’ve either gotta call me one or the other. You’re not in Diamond City anymore so there’s no need to stand on ceremony. And you don’t have to thank me either, Nick’s a friend. I’m happy to extend good old fashioned Goodneighbor hospitality to you both.” She remembered what he had done to the man at the gate and before she could stop herself, she found herself testing the waters.

“That doesn’t always involve getting a knife to the gut, does it?” Hancock actually seemed to find this humorous and responded back without any sense that he was offended at being called out on his actions, nor did it appear he had any remorse in them.

“Not so long as you remember who’s in charge.” Lucille nodded, getting what he was saying. Deciding to try to remain on his good side, she extended her hand.

“Lucille Albright.” Hancock chuckled at the name a bit.

“Man, you really are just little miss Sunshine, aren’t ya? Even the name fits.” Said Sunshine frowned at the nickname.

“What do you mean?”  
“I mean I’ve been hearin’ whispers about you and Nick running around being the saviors of the Commonwealth out there and my man MacCready says you always seem to do it with a smile. Heck, he says you get Nick to smile and I’ll tell you from experience that that’s no easy feat. Either way, good to finally meet this mystery wonder woman everyone seems to be so enamored with.” He shook her hand with a roguish grin and she decided two could play at that game.

“Same with the infamous Mayor Hancock of Goodneighbor. Nick’s told me a bit about you.”

“And the rest of what you’ve heard?” He inquired, genuinely curious.

“Some girls who you certainly wouldn’t see allowed into the Upper Stands of Diamond City were whispering about you in the Dugout Inn. What they said probably shouldn’t be spoken for modesty’s sake.” Before Hancock could respond, there was a sound from the doorway and a voice that Lucille was relieved to hear called his partner out on her antics.

“And what was a nice girl like you doin’ in a place like that then? I’m shocked at you partner.” Lucille grinned from ear to ear at hearing his voice again.

“Nick!” She sat up again, ignoring the lurching of her stomach and the dizzy feeling she got from her head. On wobbly legs, against the ignored protests of Hancock, she stumbled in his direction before Nick moved forward and steadied her gently.

“Now Lucille, the good Doctor Amari told me you were on bedrest. That usually involves bein’ in bed.” He ushered her back to the cot and she leaned upon him. She never failed to marvel at how naturally it felt to have him by her side.

“I was tellin’ her that Nick. Maybe you can get through to her. Though I doubt it if she’s as thick headed and stubborn as you are.” Hancock teased, pleased to see his old friend up and about. Lucille shot him a rotten look that she didn’t really feel and he gave her a shrug that screamed he could care less how she felt about his assessment of her.

“That’s a compliment right there partner. It’s not everyday someone outdoes _the_ John Hancock in terms of sheer force of will.” Nick responded fondly as helped his partner into bed. Hancock snorted and rolled his eyes, popping a few Mentats out of a tin that looked like it could’ve contained candy back before the war and now contained his vice of choice.

“All I know, Valentine, is that your partner’s driving me to upping my regular fix. It was real touch and go there for a while, but she pulled through. Like I said, stubborn.” With that he set the chems almost lovingly on his tongue and gave a sigh of bliss as his shoulders relaxed and his eyes seemed to gain a bit of clarity they were lacking before. Lucille would admit it was the complete opposite of what she expected when seeing someone indulge in chems recreationally. With most people they clouded their thoughts and mind, with Hancock it seemed to make him think a bit clearer and focus more intently on what was right before him. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she almost envied him his dosage if only for the fact he appeared to be more in the moment than she was. Nick noticed her struggling and sighed in exasperation at her fight to stay awake.

“Bedrest Lucille, remember?” He tucked the ragged blanket around her as she burrowed into the pillow reflexively.

“Not tired.” She yawned as her eyes heavily shut and her breathing slowed.

“I’m a detective, remember? Can’t fool me partner.” As she fitfully turned to face the sound of his voice, he decided that he’d better take the vacant seat that Hancock had once occupied in order to calm her. “Rest Lucy. You’ve earned it. I’m not goin’ anywhere.” She smiled faintly and fell into a deep sleep at that.

There was a small moment of silence before Hancock walked over to the pair, intent on getting the story he had so obviously been missing and unable to get out of still pretty beat up woman. Plunking down in the chair across from Nick on the other side of the cot, he leaned back leisurely, sure that this was going to be a long talk.  Pulling out a cigarette pack, he offered one to Nick who gratefully took the smoke. Lighting it for his friend, Hancock waited for the synth to start in on his tale. After a longer drag than was probably necessary, Nick said only one thing.  
“Thanks, John.” Hancock shrugged, not thinking much of it.

“Amari did most of the patchwork. I treated the chems and supplied the Med-X. As bad as she looked, you were a sorry sight there for a while. Thought that even KL-E-O’s lovin’ touch might not be able to pull you back this time. What hit you anyway? You look like you went a round with a pack of raiders and super mutants combined.” Nick breathed out a hefty cloud of nicotine as he surveyed his partner, mentally cataloging her injuries and battered body.

“Not far off from it. Got on the wrong side of a suit a power armor.” John winced at that and looked at the battered woman lying down between the two of them.

“So, those tin cans are takin’ potshots at folks now?” Already his mind was running through the many possibilities that lied ahead for his town if that was the case. None of them were good.

“Anyone they deem non-human. Blew right into Diamond City like they owned the town and started rounding ‘suspicious’ citizens up. We made it out the gate by the skin of our teeth.” There was a genuine anger in Nick’s voice that he often lacked. Hancock had rarely heard the sound of real hatred coming from his friend, and he found that he was wary of ever being on the receiving end of it if Nick’s tone was any indication of just how much damage he would be willing to inflict on those who earned his ire. Lighting his own cigarette and clenching it between his teeth, Hancock asked the obvious question around the butt.

“So what comes next?”

“For now I make sure my pigheaded partner follows Amari’s advice and rests. We’ll figure it out from there. We always do.” Nick’s expression softened as he gazed at Lucille. Hancock took note of that with interest.

“Well, you know that you’ve got a place here, ‘specially if you got like this sticking it to those creeps in the Brotherhood. I don’t think you have to worry too much about their type ‘round here. Probably got their noses so high they’re craning their heads and can’t even see us lowly folks down here in the Fens.” Valentine didn’t seem too convinced.

“Maybe. I’d be on the lookout John. The walk here is an awful lot easier with a legion of walking tanks on your side.” Hancock nodded, taking Nick’s warning under serious consideration. Mentally cataloguing the resources needed to amend the defenses around the town to keep the Brotherhood of Steel out. Just in case Nick was right. As much as Hancock hated to admit it, in past experience he normally was.

“Well, all the same I’m glad you and your partner there made it here, minus a piece here or there on both of ya. Got to admit though, it’s a bit disappointing it took death knocking on your door before you let me meet her. Thought you said you were done with partners after that guy Bulfinch pulled out on you.” Hancock was truly curious about this mystery woman who he’d heard so much about through visitors in his town, or MacCready’s scouting. “All I know about her are some rumors from the folks passing through and whatever MacCready’s told me.” At the name Nick gave Hancock a look of confusion. “He’s lookin’ for caps and I need eyes and ears out in the Commonwealth. Works out well enough, I know that sending him on a recon mission won’t end up with some drifter in over their heads dead because they were desperate for caps or getting in good with the mayor.”

“Wouldn’t be my first choice for a _reliable_ source of information, but I suppose if he gets the job done—Still, not to thrilled with the idea he’s been looking over our shoulder for a while now.” John gave a throaty chuckle.  
“Says the private dick.” In what can only be termed as reluctant agreement, Nick waved off the comment and addressed the matter of having another partner.

“I was set on going solo ‘til this woman here stormed a Vault full of Skinny Malone’s guys to find me. Felt good having someone to cover my back as we worked our way outta that jam. Ellie suggested we work together, and I owed her one. Promised to do her case pro bono and until we cracked it that I’d be there to back her plays. Somewhere along the way she went from client to partner, and it’s worked out pretty well for us.” His yellow orbs flicked over to her battered form. “Until now, that is.”

“What changed?” John let out a huff of smoke, itching for something a little stronger but wanting to hold off for now. His Mentats would have to be enough until he’d finished his talk with Nick. Anything worse and he’d be in for another lecture on the evils of the “poison” he was filling his body with. Nick didn’t seem to get that when you were a walking corpse, there wasn’t much a few hits could do to you that would make you worse. At least, that’s how Hancock saw it at any rate.

“Look at her John!” Nick’s fury bristled and he let out a bit of the steam that had been simmering ever since he took in the pitiful state of Lucille following their misadventure. “They did this to her because she was with me, a synth. If she’d stayed back in Diamond City like I’d tried to tell her to—“He stopped his rant and sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. At moments like this Hancock had to be reminded that Nick Valentine wasn’t, in fact, fully human. His skin was cracked and broken, circuitry on display for the world to see, and he had glowing yellow eyes. None of that, however, was enough to keep him from seeming human in these moments. Right now he wasn’t a synth, he was a man who was infuriated that someone had dared to hurt one of the most important people in his life and he was brimming with a righteous indignation and understood helplessness that made him so painfully human. “She’s like this because of me.” Nick repeated, sounding slightly defeated.

“Unless you’ve suddenly decide to be a brainwashed zealot that runs around in a tin can all day shouting ‘ad victorium’, I think it’s safe to rule you out as the guy who did this to her Valentine.” The frank dismissal of Nick’s worries as Hancock crushed his spent cigarette beneath his boot was not necessarily welcome but they were needed. John knew Nick would often put on a front when it came to people’s reactions to who and what he was, but he also knew the demons he wrestled with. They were some of the same ones that had given birth to the ghoul known as John Hancock from the man once called John McDonough.

“This isn’t a joke.” Nick glared daggers at the mayor of Goodneighbor but he could see he’d hit the nail on the head and was getting through to his friend.

“And I’m not laughing. Like I told your partner Nick, the two of you are here under my particular brand of hospitality until you’re both on your feet. Nobody’s gonna bother you.” They wouldn’t unless they were suicidal that is, he’d made that point clear with Finn.

“Always ‘for the people’ Mr. Mayor?” Nick asked sardonically, not really feeling the heat he was putting towards his words. He knew he should be thankful for the offer of a safe house but he was still a bit raw at being called out for his acceptance of blame when it came to his partner.

“And ‘of the people’ Nicky.” He gestured to himself with a wave of his hand. “That’s the thing that those Brotherhood goons don’t get, ain’t it? You don’t get to choose who ‘people’ are. They’re just people like you, like me, like your partner there.” He nodded toward the passed out Lucille and then made his way to the exit, leaving Nick alone with his thoughts.

Social time was over, he had work to do, a city to run, and a wall to reinforce just in case the Brotherhood of Steel started getting antsy and setting their sights on his town. This collection of outcasts and wayward settlers were spat upon as freaks, but these were his people and they were under his protection with Nick and Lucille now as well. If the Brotherhood had a problem with that, they’d have to get through John Hancock. He smirked to himself as he walked towards Fahrenheit just thinking how much they’d come to rue that decision.


	4. One Last Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucille deals with her past in order to be able to move forward.

_“One more tomorrow_  
_To hold you in my embrace_  
 _And thrill with rapture_  
 _Each time I look at your face”_

Lucille stirred a bit, the sweet and melancholy tune played softly out of the radio by her bedside.

_“One more tomorrow  
To see heaven in your eyes…”_

She glanced around, looking for a sign of anyone and was a bit confused when there was no sign of either Nick or Hancock, or even this Doctor Amari that they had spoken of plenty of times but she only remembered vaguely from when she was being given treatment. The last thing she remembered was Nick saying he’d stay with her as she fell under due to exhaustion. Supposing that he probably had good reasoning for being absent, Lucille stood up on shaky legs and examined her surroundings. The room wasn’t the small clinic stall she had been tucked away in, but somewhere else that was more like a bedroom.

 It wasn’t as homey as her shanty in Sanctuary, but it was comfortable enough. There was a large bed and it had smoky red accents. Her frayed trench coat was laid out on the dresser to the right of her, and peeking down she realized she was dressed in nothing but a pre-war nightie. Not wanting to dwell on who had had to undress her to take a look at her wounds, she scrambled for her clothes and put them on whilst hoping it hadn’t been Hancock.

Her fedora was on a hat rack by the door and she placed it deftly on her head before walking out the door, intent on hunting down her wayward partner. Stepping into the building beyond her isolated sleeping quarters, she squinted a bit at the change in lighting and at the curious furniture splayed out before her. There were a few people lounging on sofas, and then there were pods not unlike the ones that lingered in Vault 111 to trap the unwary Vault Dwellers.

Wary and startled at the connection, Lucille started to pick her way through the room towards the exit door before a friendly voice stopped her.

“Feeling better sweetheart?” The voice that asked was actually concerned with her wellbeing but an undercurrent of curiosity was in her tone as well. Lucille turned to face the woman who addressed her.

“Much better actually. Is this your place?” The woman nodded in response and indicated the people that Lucille could only imagine were customers as some sort. The woman herself was dressed in a teasing little number that would turn heads and accentuated her feature. Her voice had a paradoxical quality of being smooth as silk with a bit of a smoky rasp to it that added to the alluring qualities she already possessed in spades. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a prim up-do that juxtaposed the saucy statement of her outfit. All in all, Lucille felt a little bit subconscious in her rat’s nest for hair after being under for who knew how long. Her tattered trench coat and warn fedora didn’t help things.

“I’m Irma. Welcome to the Memory Den. Amari said you needed bedrest, and Nick called in a favor to keep you out of the Rexford and close to the good doctor herself. Not that he had to ask of course. Valentine knows he’s _always_ welcome here.” There was a small smile in her words as she said them and suddenly Lucille felt even more self-conscious. Trying not to dwell on the words and what they might mean about Irma’s history with her partner, she got back to asking questions.

“What do you do here? I’ve only seen tech like this in Vaults.” Irma smiled indulgently and shrugged one shoulder in a careless gesture.  
“Vault-Tec left behind all sorts of little goodies for us. Might as well do something good with them. As for what we do here, it’s in the name. This is where people come to relive their memories.” A sigh of contentment from one of the pods added credence to her words and Lucille couldn’t stop her curiosity from getting the better of her.

“How much do you charge?” She wondered if she could come back later after they’d had a chance to regroup and earn some more caps. She didn’t want to admit it, but the temptation of seeing home again and as lifelike as Irma was advertising sent a pang of longing through her that she wasn’t able to ignore. Irma looked thoughtfully at the ragged PI.

“Well sweetheart, normally we keep the cliental to a very select few. This here isn’t for everyone and the first time tends to be a bit…dramatic. I normally only let people I trust into these loungers.” Lucille was about to protest, to try to convince Irma that she could handle it when she cut her off. “However, if the buzz around town is true I’ve got you to thank for dragging Nick out of the Wasteland and keeping a few of my better clients alive through your work with the Minutemen. I’d say that makes you trustworthy. How about this, I’ll give you a trial run and see if you can handle it. Your partner had some business to take care of with the mayor so you’ve got some time before he’ll be back and I think Amari wouldn’t mind the chance to make sure your brain isn’t all scrambled. What do you say?”

Unable to pass up the opportunity and reassured that Nick would be joining her soon, Lucille agreed to take her up on it.

“Alright. Let’s do it.” Irma smiled and called Doctor Amari up from her lab.

“We’ve got a new client dear. Your recent patient would like to experience the memory lounger, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to make sure that her head is still attached the way it should be.” Amari came up the stairs and looked over at the Vault Dweller with a critical eye.

“Well, I suppose that is one way to test her cognitive functions. We will have to take it easy though. Pushing her too much will undue all my hard work.” With that, the doctor went over to the console that controlled the memory loungers and fiddled with it for a moment as Irma debriefed Lucille on how the lounges worked.

“Now, memories involving other people are easiest. Recent events involving loved ones. Does anything come to mind?” Looking over at the pods Vault 111 flashed briefly through her mind as the tune from before continued softly in the background in the silence as Lucille pondered the question.

 _“One more tomorrow_  
_To see heaven in your eyes_  
 _To have your hand cling to mine_  
 _And wander through paradise._  
  
_One more tomorrow_  
 _To kiss your lips constantly._..”

“I—“Lucille faltered as the lyrics played out. “My--my husband passed recently. I’d give anything to see him again.” The brutal honesty was a killer to admit, but this was a chance she wasn’t going to squander.

Irma nodded thoughtfully.  
“Yes, that should work. What do you say Amari? Can we give her another chance to see her husband?” Amari sighed.

“As I stated earlier, as long as we don’t overexert her, I don’t see why not. We will just need to be cautious.” Irma waved towards an empty lounger invitingly after getting confirmation from her partner.

“Then take a seat love. Let’s see what we can do for you.” Lucille approached machine in wariness, reminding herself that this wasn’t the Vault and she wasn’t about to be frozen again. The chair was soft and inviting, velvety and enticing. It was nothing like the pleather of the pod she had been tricked into inhabiting yet that did very little to impede the sense of claustrophobia and the increased heartrate that she felt as she laid back. “Deep breaths dear, we’re about to begin.” Irma called to her as the pod closed and a screen that had a familiar warning of “PLEASE STAND BY” blaring on it was in her line of vision. The Sole Survivor breathed deeply and closed her eyes as Amari scanned her.

“Alright, scanning the hippocampus…I’ve found something! Something very recent. The sync with the temporal lobes is strong.”

“That’s the one! Lift the curtain, honey, it’s show-time!” Irma called to Amari. Lucille’s vision blurred and her senses all dimmed. After one more deep breath she was inhabiting the world of her memories, hoping that this wasn’t a mistake as her gut was telling her. She vaguely hears a door being opened in the background and a familiar man’s voice on the edge of her consciousness, but then she was pulled in and she didn’t care anymore.

* * *

 

Soft, sweet music played in the background as birds lovingly chirped to ring in a new day.

“ _One more tomorrow  
To hold you in my embrace,”_

It was that same song. Why was it that song? Why couldn’t she get away from it?  
Lucille stretched and yawned as the bedsheets fell lazily against her side and turned to face the window. Her eyes widened as she looked out on the landscape below her. It wasn’t the war torn and decimated landscape she had come to know, but a green world of prosperity and tranquility that was now, two hundred years later, a thing of legend. Confusion marred her features as she shot out of bed and threw open the door to her bedroom.

She heard a strong baritone singing along to the song right across the hall in the room that had once been her son’s nursery. Running across the hall, her heart thumped wildly in her chest as she took in the scene before her.

“ _And thrill with rapture  
Each time I look at your face.” _

It was Nate singing to their infant son as song that he had said kept him going when overseas on deployment as it reminded him of why he had to keep fighting. He was rocking their baby and melodically lulling him to sleep. Now Lucille remembered. This was the morning that had started it all. The day he was supposed to give a speech at the Veteran’s Hall in Concord, the day that the fateful knock of Vault-Tec on their door had ushered them into hell.

He paused as he saw his wife leaning on the door frame.  
“Hi, honey.” He whispered gently as he set the slumbering Shaun back into his cradle. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” Lucille almost couldn’t speak as her throat grew a lump and tears started to pool in her eyes. He wasn’t real, she knew that but he was here and he was just so _Nate_ , the man she had loved with all her heart.

So Lucille indulged herself as she had that morning and kissed him. That morning it had been because he was home with his family where he belonged and she couldn’t have been more grateful to have him there. This time it was with more passion and longing as she knew that she would never do this again. Nate smiled against her lips and guided her out of the room to their own to have a moment of being husband and wife before they set about their respective days.

“I suppose I ought to sing more often if this is what it gets me. Ladies never were able to resist my voice back in my college days.” He joked as the two moved towards the bed. Lucille had chuckled then and made a joke about him always being a charmer, but now she just held onto him for dear life as her words were said as though from afar in the memory playing out. Nate continued to hum the song to tease her, and Lucille had laughed and kissed him to accentuate the lyrics.

_“One more tomorrow  
To kiss your lips constantly…” _

As she had laid down on the bed she had finished the rest of the song and grinned invitingly up at him.

_“And feel the pounding  
As your heart beats next to me.”_

He had smiled then and made to join her, when suddenly the memory jolted. Her vision blurred again as it had when she entered the lounger.

 ** _“Amari, what’s goin’ on?”_** She heard someone say in the background.

**_“The memory, it is fading and being replaced by a repressed one. This is sometimes an effect of the memory lounger—“_ **

**_“Pull her out of there! NOW!”_** That same voice from before barked and she knew he had a name. All that she could seem to remember in her limbo was that he was her partner. What type of partner? In her addled state she couldn’t be sure.

Her vision focused again and she saw Nate as though through a fogged mirror. She let out a breath of confusion and a wisp of cold air lazily made its way from her mouth to the glass pane in front of her. Coughing and gasping for air, her senses focused again. Her heart beat spiked as she saw the scene in front of her.

“Nate…” She whispered as the cryopod across the way was forced open, the mind replacing her moment of bliss with a moment of horror and torment. “Nate!” She pounded on the pod as she had the first time, desperate for a way out of having to relive this.

**_“Amari, get her out now!”  
“I can’t Nicholas! She is too engaged in the memory! If we release her now, there’s no telling the damage that it could do!” _ **

Meanwhile Nate was struggling to grasp their baby in his barely unthawed limbs as the mercenary and scientists wrenched him from their arms.  
“NATE! SHAUN!” Lucille yelled and clawed against the door imprisoning her. It didn’t budge.  
“I’m not giving you Shaun!” Nate cried out in defiance and the echoing gunshot in response caused Lucille to let out a wordless scream of agony at the sight of her husband’s murder. Blood pooled from the center of his forehead and his eyes seared straight into his wife’s in glassy blame.

**_“Hold on, the memory is fading. We’ll get you out of there soon.”_ **

“At least we have the backup.” The mercenary sneered at her as he walked over to her pod. She spewed her hatred and helplessness at him. She felt the coolness of the cryogenic functions sedating her limbs and her muscles grew lethargic as her head lulled back, unable to stay up any longer as the deep sleep was forced upon her body once again. Her breathing was erratic, her heart pounding in pain and torment as the tears slipped past her eyes and contrasted her freezing body with their warmth.

**_“Try to calm down…your blood pressure is spiking…I’ll have you out of there in… three…two…one.”_ **

The dome encasing the memory lounger lifted and Lucille sat up straight, bolting out of the machine as though it were trying to attack her. She stumbled with blurry eyes as the tears clouded her vision and looked around wildly for anywhere to retreat to so long as it was away from that thing and the memories that it held.

“Easy there sweetheart, easy.” Irma said slowly to try and calm her down. Lucille stood frozen in place as she noticed the four figures who had joined her in the Memory Den. There was Amari who was looking from the panel to her patient, trying to assess if any permanent damage had been done. There was Irma who held out a hand in platitude as though trying to calm a wounded animal. The familiar red frock coat of Hancock stood there, his hat askew and his features twisted in what looked like morbid fascination, slight disbelief at the whole situation of what he had just seen and its implications, and most of all sympathy that lacked the pity most people showed and for that Lucille was grateful.

Then there was Nick. His eyes flickered unintelligibly from the machine to his partner, stepping closer to be there to have her back like he had promised, especially after this ordeal. Hearing about the brutal murder of Lucille’s family had been one thing, seeing it was another. Now more than ever he was determined to track Kellogg down and make him pay for what he had done.

“Lucille?” He asked softly. She looked at him with her eyes brimming with tears yet again, and her face displayed the heartbreak she felt with unabashed openness. That was how he knew that she was far from alright. She never showed weakness if she could help it, opening up only when she had reached the end of her limits.

“It should’ve been me.” She whispered, looking past him towards nothing in particular but empty space. “Why didn’t they take me?”

At those words Nick moved towards his partner and let her collapse on his side, gently guiding her towards the room she had been recovering in. He had stepped out to talk over fortifications of the town with John and when he had come back it had been too late and she was already in the machine. If he had known she’d try one of the loungers upon waking up he would’ve stayed until she was up to keep her from doing so. He’d had enough experiences in their sometimes less than tender embraces to know that it was foolish to let a grieving widow in there. He just hadn’t expected Irma to allow her to try anything so foolhardy.

He sat her down on the bed where she curled up with her knees to her chin, and her face buried in them. The crying turned into heavy sobs and he sat next to her, gripping her shoulder tightly as she let out all the emotions she had kept bottled for months now in the wake of her husband’s demise. She clenched her teeth and sang something through the shaking breaths and gasps for air.

_“One more tomorrow  
Filled with love the whole day through..."_

Her weeping started to soften, but her voice cracked on the last phrase as it went from a half-singing to a whispered reverential ode to the dead.

_“And then tomorrow I'd beg  
For one more tomorrow with you.” _

Dead silence as the two of them sat there, each lost in memories of the things they’d lost in this new world they found themselves in. She leaned over onto Valentine and rested her head on his shoulder as the tears stopped and her breathing flowed.

“I’m sorry you saw that.” She muttered, drying her eyes on her shirt. Nick looked at her incredulously. She trusted him with her life on a daily basis when they were out there wandering the wastes yet she seemed so hesitant to trust him with this.

“Don’t be partner. All you’ve done is showed me you’re human, and there isn’t any shame in that.” She grinned at him in a sad little way that hurt to see because it was lacking the usual teasing or goofiness that her grin normally accompanied.

“You’d have liked him you know. You two would’ve been good friends, I can tell. You’re both good men.” Not even bothering to consider asking who she meant, he nodded thoughtfully.

“He’d have to have been a good man to get you. You’ve got a good taste in partners after all.” Her grin widened into a smile and she leaned further into his comforting presence. The joke helped to alleviate the tension some, and for that Nick was grateful.

“That song, it was what he said kept him going when he was deployed. It was our wedding dance.” Lucille played with the rings that she kept around her neck on a chain.  
“Tell me about him.” Nick encouraged her, wanting to give her a chance to work this out of her system. She had told him only a bit about her life before the bombs and besides wanting to give her a chance to vent, he was genuinely curious about who she had been before the world that she and the original Nick Valentine had once known was blown away. “Just so I know if you’re right about us bein’ pals and all.”

Lucille settled in and told him all the things she could about her life in college, how she and Nate had met, how he had courted her as though they lived in the 1950’s. He learned of her favorite restaurants and her favorite jokes. He discovered that purple was her favorite color, and that the bright yellow of the Vault-Tec logo made her nauseous. He learned about her older brother who was a soldier like Nate had been, and how she was estranged from her mother after her father had died.

In those hours they talked he gained a new perspective on his partner, but it didn’t change how he viewed her. The things he learned applied to a woman who had died when she entered Vault 111. Just as Nick Valentine the cop had died in the past with the bombs and he was his own man as Nick Valentine the synth, Lucille Albright wasn’t that pre-war housewife with a white picket fence anymore. The woman she was now as a private investigator and General of the Minutemen, the self-decided champion for the afflicted of the Wasteland: that was the Lucille who was his partner. Still, it was good to know how that woman had come to be about.

Eventually it grew too late to talk and Nick had to force Lucille to turn in for the night. “Stay with me. Please.” She requested again as she had the night before and he didn’t have the heart to say no. He took up a spot on the spare chair by the door, smoking a cigarette as she nodded off. This time, he vowed, he would be there when she woke up. They had things to discuss and plans that needed to be made, but for now she deserved a rest. The Brotherhood of Steel could wait for this brief moment of piece that his partner so desperately needed.


	5. Worry, Worry, Worry, Woe is Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A question is posed that leaves Lucille lurching after an encounter with a Paladin.

Things fell into a rhythm once again as they stayed in Goodneighbor. Nick and Lucille found a small place next to the Statehouse that John called his own at a reasonable price, and Lucille took up the odd jobs that KL-E-O and Daisy had for her to do. Whether it be organizing and stalking shelves, or tweaking and repairing weapons they had a steady enough supply of caps. Nick wasn’t short on work either as Hancock had him running interference and preparation in case of a Brotherhood attack, plus the many people who came to him for his expertise as a private eye. Lucille was getting better but Amari insisted she still needed plenty of downtime. Good thing most of the cases that Nick and Lucille caught were simple jobs of finding misplaced items, or pointing people in the right direction after they strolled into town looking for a loved one amongst the many drifters. It was an odd sort of life, but they were content with it once again. They planned for the day when they’d be able to go back to Diamond City and reopen the agency, but with the news bulletins that played on the Diamond City Radio frequency, they weren’t sure when that would be.

Lucille still kept in contact with the Minutemen over a secure channel, and she had Preston as her hands and feet on the ground. It turned out that Piper and Ellie had managed to sneak out of the town and make it to Sanctuary and had joined the efforts of the Minutemen from there. They were a great help in the care of the settlement, or gathering Intel in Piper’s case. Lucille coordinated as best as she could, but she felt helpless and it irritated her. When that happened, he’d turn to John and see if there was anything around town he needed the two of them to do to get her mind off of things.

 Hancock had hit it off pretty well with his partner over the weeks. They had a similar sense of humor, a predilection for sticking it out for hopeless cases, and a tendency to be willing to put themselves in the line of fire for just about anyone decent. Many nights at the Third Rail, or playing a game of cards, or just shooting the breeze had allowed the two of them to become fast friends and Nick was grateful that she had someone else to watch her back. He owed John more than he cared to admit, so when he asked for help, Nick always said yes.

….

The mission was simple: reconnaissance. As such, Nick didn’t feel much like bothering Lucille with the details when he said he had a job to do with Hancock. After all, she was still resting and could use a bit of quite time away from the action while the synth was itching for a taste of it. Being stuck in behind a walled in city was exactly the type of thing that his agency in Diamond City allowed him to avoid. He was a being of action, and after being patched up he was just waiting for a chance to do something other than wait around for the Brotherhood to come knocking on his door again.

That wasn’t to say that he wanted the same for his partner. As much as she liked to believe it, that stubborn human couldn’t go as long as he could and she needed rest desperately. Her pale skin had gained some color to it again, and the shakes from the overindulgence in chems had been waded out but her mind and body still were tired out. She needed to stay and rest.

So he decided that this mission would just be him and Hancock. The mayor of Goodneighbor had asked him before they trekked out if Lucille would be joining them and after a simple “no” had shrugged and they were on their way to see the damage that the Brotherhood had wrecked on the Fens.

There wasn’t much in the way of dangers anymore as they stealthily picked their way through the ruins over the charred corpses and bullet ridden bodies of mutants and raiders alike. As a matter of fact, the trail of carnage was much too close to his town for Hancock’s liking. It meant that the Brotherhood had, in fact, extended their reach beyond Diamond City and were systematically clearing out sections of the old rubble that was once downtown Boston.

After they’d hit their fifth downed supermutant and stumbled over three dead Brotherhood soldiers, Hancock stopped to survey the surrounding area looking out from the peak of the old parking garage they found themselves in.

“They’re cleaning house.” John said after a moment of leaning against the crumbling cement supports of the structure. “And they’re makin’ their way towards my town.” That last part he narrowed his eyes at in thought.

“We need to be getting your people ready, John, for when they do come.” Nick let out a sigh more out of habit than necessity at the situation. Hancock nodded in agreement, but continued with his train of thought.

“They’re comin’ to my town, and they’re still looking for you and your partner. Do you know that they haven’t given up since you two made tracks? The synth detective and the Vault Dweller, they talk about you on the radio all the time. That radio jockey, Travis? He talks about you all the time. Makes sure to remind the folks listening about what you’ve done in the past when the Brotherhood orders him to send out mention of you on the broadcast. Says it’s to help jog folks’ memories of where they might’ve seen you last, but I think it’s the kid’s way of stickin’ it to those creeps.” Nick didn’t say anything, but he stared off towards the walls of Diamond City with a forlorn expression. “You two got friends Nick. You musta really made waves for this many people to stick their necks out for you.”

“They should stop. The last thing I want is to drag anyone else into this mess.” Nick grumbled, deciding to light a smoke while they took a break.

“I thought we were over this crap.” John scolded. “Don’t for one second let those idiots convince you that you ain’t worth the fuss ‘cause it ain’t a fuss these folks are causing: it’s a reminder of what it means to be a person that those zealots won’t ever get. Though, speaking of ‘anyone else’, you wanna tell me why they’re so interested in you and Luce?” Nick didn’t respond with anything except a shrug.

“I can’t say I know. All I know is they stroll into town and suddenly we’ve got a battalion of goons chasing us halfway across the Wasteland. As if we haven’t got enough on our plate already with lookin’ for Lucille’s son.” Nick trailed off, lost in exasperation and anger.

“I gotta tell ya, I’ve seen a lot of messed up situations out here, but nothing quite as complicated and twisted as what Sunshine’s got to deal with. Yeah, I’ve seen worse, but I can only imagine wakin’ up to this hellhole after a cushy pre-war life and a freshly murdered husband. If that don’t take the cake for the strangest tale I’ve heard, I don’t know what will.”

“She’s a survivor, that one.” Nick fondly responded. “Speaking of survivors, there’s none around here so we should probably get a move on before we become food for whatever wants to come and snack on these fellas here.”

“You’re not going anywhere.” A voice that was obstructed by the helmet of his armor countered, his gun pointed straight in their direction. His image flickered one last time before the telltale sound of a Stealth-Boy shorting out could be heard. The man was wounded, battered, and barely able to stand but he had gotten the drop on them and the weapon he possessed could do some serious damage. And it was pointed at Hancock’s heart.

“Just how do you think this is going to play out sweetheart?” Hancock grinned, his eyes flickering between the wobbly soldier and the slaughtered men, women, and mutants on the floor. “You’re barely able to keep from fallin’ over.”

“And yet I’m still a remarkably good shot.” He warned, jolting his gun for emphasis. Nick frowned as he studied the man.   
“How about this? You put your gun down, you get to walk away unlike your unfortunate pals here.” Nick gestured to do the dead knights. “You seem to be the survivor of the group, so use those smarts and do the right thing here.”

“The right thing?” There was a dead, cold laugh behind that mask. “The right thing would be to do my duty and stop you from escaping as enemies of the Brotherhood of Steel.” He primed his weapon. “The right thing would be for me to execute you right here, right now like the abominations you are.” He then lowered his weapon. “But the right thing can wait if you answer this simple question: Where is Nora?”

Hancock gave Nick a confused look who just shook his head in clear misunderstanding.

“Who now?” Nick questioned, trying to buy time and understand at the same time.   
“You know who I’m talking about synth! Where is she?!” The man shifted his weapon’s aim to a bead on Nick’s head before a bullet tore through the air and ripped through the arm that he was cradling his gun with. His armor was in enough disrepair that he dropped his gun with a small yell of pain.

“Nick! John!” There was a yell from the adjacent roof and lo and behold there was Lucille with a rifle and a scope, carefully aiming to wound without killing the surviving Brotherhood soldier. “Get over here, you idiots!” She threw down a cable she had found in the wreckage (a downed telephone wire) for them to use to get across the small gap in between the buildings while peppering the area around the soldier with bullets to keep him occupied. Seeing their chance, the two scurried over to a hole in the wall they could get out of, grabbed the cable, and pulled themselves up to the fourth floor of the adjacent building. As soon as they had hauled themselves up, Lucille grabbed the both of them by the lapels and dragged them in the opposite direction of the soldier.

“Idiots!” She cursed under her breath as they ran back towards the sanctuary of Goodneighbor. “Next time you even think about doing a recon mission, you better take me, or at the very least Fahrenheit with you because the two of you can’t seem to stay out of trouble!”

Over the few weeks that the Sole Survivor and Nick had been in Goodneigbor, Lucille had grown rather fond of the mayor. She was just as furious that he had put himself in harm’s way without her there to cover his back as she was with Nick.

“Absolute, pig-headed morons!” They were about at the door to Goodneighbor now.   
“Hey now, no need to get nasty partner.” Nick tried to soothe her ire to no avail.   
“Don’t patronize me Valentine!” They entered through the door that had been modified to look faded and rickety, unused and rusted. It was a way of blending in to the rubble surrounding the area. The once welcoming sign of “Everyone welcome” had been scrubbed to look like it was pre-war graffiti. Even the inviting glow of the light to herald newcomers to the town had been shut down as the Brotherhood extended their reach across the Wasteland. “You don’t get to do that after what you just did!”

There were a few onlookers now as they entered, a few drifters and other residents who were looking in confusion and curiosity at the three as they came back and were waiting for word on what they had found out there. Fahrenheit was among those who showed up to greet them.

“Trouble boss?”

“You bet, Fahrenheit. These idiots went out there without any backup and just about got jumped by a Brotherhood of Steel Paladin!”

“So they’re making their way this far out, huh?” Fahrenheit asked. Hancock nodded tiredly as Lucille continued to remain steamed.

“Yeah, we’ll have to keep getting folks ready. Spread the news and talk to KL-E-O about manufacturing some ammunition and weapons.” Fahrenheit nodded and, after raising an eyebrow at the strange trio, left to spread the word.

He turned to face his friends as Lucille stood there, a pissed off expression on her face and a glare that could melt steel.

“Can I help you?” He finally ventured. She threw her hands up in exasperation.

“You know what, I’m going to go and talk to KL-E-O. See what I can do to help, because at least somebody’s gotta think I’m capable of being useful around here.” Before she could stalk off, Nick grabbed her arm.

“Lucille, nobody thinks you’re useless. Stop throwin’ a fit and talk about this with me like my partner instead of an angry teenager.” He was just as agitated as Lucille was and felt it necessary to call her out.

“Oh, so now I’m your partner?” She shrugged off his hand and turned back on him. “If that’s true Nick, how come you won’t let me have your back when you’re going out into the Wastes? It’s been a few months Nick, and that little scuffle that we had with that Paladin proved that I can still handle myself.” She sighed heavily and turned away, starting to walk towards KL-E-O’s shop. “You could’ve died Nick. You and John, and I would’ve only found out what happened to you because of Fahrenheit telling me you decided to go out on your own. How do you think it would’ve been for me if they’d gotten you and I wasn’t there to stop them? You didn’t even bother to ask me if I felt up to it. That feels pretty one-sided for a partnership to me.”

Nick was properly chastised and just watched as she took off for the shop, leaving her friend and partner to contemplate her words.

…

Hancock made up with Lucille easily. She had a hard time staying mad at the man who had taken her and Nick under his wing. Nick however, he wasn’t sure he would be so lucky.

He walked in on her working at the small cooking station they had set up in their little home as she listened to Diamond City Radio, her favorite station still despite of the propaganda the Brotherhood pumped out on the air. She was making a stew out of mirelurk, and to Nick’s amazement as usual, it actually smelled pretty good.

_“Worry worry worry love is passing me by_

_Worry worry worry, I’m so painfully shy”_

She hummed as she cooked, muttering the lyrics under her breath and glancing out the window in thought. She often got lost in her own world when listening to the sounds of the old world. Nick Valentine in his previous life had been more of a jazz fan, and that carried over to his present life so while Nick knew quite a few of the tunes, he was less nostalgic than she was when it came to the songs played over the radio.

“Am I interrupting?” He asked softly and she jumped a bit, then looked from the window to her partner and shrugged.

“Not really.”

_“Baby Baby Baby, I’m a fool about love…”_

Nick sat down on the stool facing the impromptu table that Lucille had cobbled together and watched her continue with her work, this time more quietly.

_“Maybe maybe maybe I should go to school about love_

_When it comes to getting chummy (I’ll admit I’m quite a dummy)”_

“You’re right.” Nick announced after the thick silence being interrupted by that annoyingly cheerful song. Lucille stopped and looked at Nick in questioning. “You were right. Me thinkin’ I know what’s best for you isn’t going to do you any favors. And it’s not how a partnership works. You were right, and I’m sorry I treated you like a client instead of a partner.”

Lucille nodded and stopped her cooking, sitting down next to Nick as she left her stew to do what it was named for.

“I understand that you’re worried about me Nick. Believe it or not, I even get that I was pretty banged up by those Brotherhood bozos. That’s why I don’t want you leaving me behind, I don’t want you nearly getting torn apart by them again. I—I don’t know what I’d do then.”

_“I found out that I'm the worrying kind  
I'll go worrying right along_ ”

“Well, lucky for me, I’ve got a pretty good partner making sure that it won’t.” Lucille granted him a small smile and he gave her a wry grin in response.

She patted his arm affectionately, a signal of understanding and forgiveness between the two of them and went back to check on her stew and turn the radio down so they could talk about their respective days and compare notes.

“Speaking of close encounters though, I’ve gotta ask. Something’s been bugging me ever since that tin can had John and I covered, and I hoped that you might know what he was talking about.

“Oh?” Lucille said as she reached for the dial to the radio.

“He asked about a Nora. Ever met someone called that? I don’t think she’s one of our clients but maybe you knew her or something before and that’s why they’re so interested in you. He seemed awfully sure that I knew this woman.”

Lucille’s hand paused on the knob of the radio, her entire body stiffening in posture.

_“Life is fine, but with a worrying mind”_

“Lucille?” Nick called her name after a moment of thick silence. She swallowed heavily and turned the radio down a notch as she meant to do before joining Nick once more at the table.

“I knew a woman named Nora once. She died before the bombs fell though. They couldn’t know about her.” She reconsidered that. “Or at least they shouldn’t.”

“You two close before she died?” Nick was still trying to piece together the puzzle. Lucille nodded.

“Once, I suppose in a way we were. She’s been dead for a long time though, and I can’t say I miss her.” Lucille then launched into updates about the ammunitions and fortifications, but Nick was shocked at her statement. Lucille never spoke so nonchalantly about the death of former friends, and she never was so coldhearted. Even when she had to kill raiders or other ne’er do wells she had a twinge of regret at the loss of life. It was hard to imagine her being so dispassionate.

“ _(So many things can go wrong)”_

The look in her eyes showed him that she was done discussing this mysterious Nora. His questions would have to wait until she was ready. Until then, he’d have to try and piece together the puzzle of the Paladin intent on finding a woman dead for over two centuries on his own and hope that his partner came around soon.

 As much as she tried to brush it off, the reaction she gave to the name and the vehemence with which the Paladin had insisted that the detective and this woman knew each other meant that this was probably an important part of what the Brotherhood wanted with his partner. If he was sure of nothing else, it was that they wouldn’t be able to ask her themselves about this Nora. They wouldn’t be careless enough to give them the chance.

“ _Worry worry worry, woe is me.”_

Lucille switched off the radio and they sat down to eat dinner without much chitchat, each lost in their own thoughts and trying to ignore the feeling of dread clouding their thoughts in relation to the uncertain future they were facing.


End file.
